A british researcher did a study and decided the most depressing day of the year is Jan 23.That is the day Canada chose for its federal election. I think the conservatives are going to win a powerless minority government. Canada will have its own George Bush.

"The U.S. Food and Drug Administration reports that at least 76 dogs nationwide are believed to have died as a result of eating contaminated Diamond Pet Foods.

The company has recalled 19 varieties of dog and cat food because tests showed high levels of aflatoxin, a naturally occurring toxic chemical that comes from a fungus found on corn and other grains that causes severe liver damage in animals."

The reader comments on the Boing Boing article about it suggest that this isn't anywhere near as bad as it sounds. What it makes illegal is anonymous harrassment, which was (surprise!) already illegal.

Oh for Christ's sake, don't these so-called "lawmakers" have more important things to do than make up vague laws that are un-enforceable at best, and subject to abuse by our increasingly fascist government at worst?

Basically, it expands the old telephone annoyance/harass/threaten law to internet communications via software (such as email, IM, and VoIP), but not internet services (I assume this means bulletin boards or message boards, IRC, usenet, that sort of thing). There still needs to be clarification regarding the difference between "software" and "service," though.

I don't really know where to sort this one : it's good to have testimonies out... But what they tell is pretty damn fucking bad.

quote:

He also spoke of beatings, sexual assaults, threats to his family and having to endure lengthy periods in solitary confinement, plus disease, illness and infection being rife among those held at the camp.

I don't really know where to sort this one : it's good to have testimonies out... But what they tell is pretty damn fucking bad.

quote:

He also spoke of beatings, sexual assaults, threats to his family and having to endure lengthy periods in solitary confinement, plus disease, illness and infection being rife among those held at the camp.

Which I translate as : "For the Head of the State, terrorism, but also "the insurance of our strategical supplies and the protection of out allies", are cases where the use of nuclear weapons can be considered.

What the cock?

"Strategical supplies" ?Like oil?

"Iran doesn't want to sell us oil anymore, so we can nuke them"?

Although I contributed to his election, I do not condone anything this buffoon does.I promise I'll vote against him in 2007, before leaving the country for good.

Like Al Qaida have any control over what is going on in Afghanistan and Iraq. It's only in the minds of the US people that Al Qaida are acting in those theatres. The reality is insurgents and warlords that are there because the US invaded and would be there with or without Al Qaida.

Even more bad news is that this may not help. The biggest cost of a new Ford car is the healthcare and pensions of ex-Ford workers. Slashing production will actually raise the percentage of the cost that is going to pay Ford pensioners.

Originally posted by Kradlum:Tying someone up, stuffing them head first into a sleeping bag and sitting on their chest until they die is not murder.

Pressuring the jury in a murder trial is ok too.

And, when you get found guilty of "negligent homicide" (I sat on his chest while he was tied up and stuffed head first in a sleeping bag. How negligent of me.) you get a $6000 fine and confined to barracks for 60 days. So kids, just remember this method if you need someone dead but don't want to do the time, and it's always handy to be tried by your "family".

Of course, in a civilised country they would call tying someone up, stuffing them head first into a sleeping bag and sitting on their chest "torture", but in America they call it an "approved interrogation technique".

I don't know if that is such bad news. Weird news maybe. I think I'd be in favour of a voluntary death penalty. It's not like you'll have lengthy appeals and the possibility of executing an innocent man.

It sure beats having someone sit on death row for 25 years and be resuscitated from a heart attack just so you can kill them.

If being in jail is so bad that they'd rather die, then it's definitely bad news (although not surprising).

I agree with the general sentiment.But that would open too many ways towards coming back to plain death penalty.Moreover -and I know it sucks to say that- if they really want to die, they can commit suicide.

Then, it also opens the question of euthanasy, which is definitely not solved here.

Voluntary death penalty would require undeniable proof that the person wants to die.And what about the possibility of being released earlier than expected?And amnesty?

So I came here to post as I am at school with kids until the district releases children to catch buses. A "fighter Jet has crashed at a Trailer park adjacent to the Pioneer home here in Ketchikan. My grandma called me at school minutes ago to tell me her building was filled with smoke; that she was scared. I was able to find out from a nurse at the home My Grandma and the residents of the building are all fine. But Jesus! A Jet has crashed inside city limits. We are holding kids at school until parents of children in the park contact someone to let us know they are alive to receive their children. God I hope all our kids here still have parents. My ninety-one year old Grandma Is shaken. Quite literally I guess.

Thank you much Gromit and Etruscan, I just got back from the pioneer home. My poor Alzheimer suffering' Grandma took a little settling down. She kept asking "Are we on fire, Is this building on fire?" The Pioneer Home is downwind from the accident site and had received quite a bit of smoke. I was at loose ends as I knew my mom was in the area at the time and in fact she did see the jet dissaper behind the building she had just exited. She heard the impact and saw debrie scatter. Very thoughtfully stopped at school to say "Wow..." The fireman outside the home said he had word that it was a "Slovakian military jet of some sort possibly converted for personal use." The Plane had one pilot who did not survive, though he did "Eject from the plane" Lots of talk on the street. The people/s in both trailers survived in spite of a jet of some size (Dunno) crashing into their homes. All parents of my students are accounted for. Word has it a dog was rescued from the truck it was pinned in. the fireman I spoke to was pretty happy about that. It can't be a huge jet or I could have seen it from my grandmothers room. All is well. Thanks Guy's.

Yikes Lietz you have more info on the crash then I have here in town. I went to high school with ol'Kurtis Close. The High School Janitors mother and nephew did indeed climb out through a window in their trailer with the aid of firemen to escape their home, they are both in the hospital now. Seems like minor damage when one considers where the plane went down.

It is beautiful here indeed. If you don't mind rain. I think we came close to two hundred inches this year. It is a beautiful area though. Wow 38 degrees celsius, I can not conceive being that warm. It is alternately Zero to Five celsius here right now. Moss, saltwater and evergreens is what this place smells like, and diesel if you live on the north end of town.Oh yeah things could have been much worse. the jet stopped maybe fifty yards or so from a Grocery store and fifty more from the old folks home. This town will rally around the families that lost everything. Fundraisers are underway already. So very different from so much of the world where there is no disposable income to speak of or health care. D.E.C. is flying in for clean -up all ready.

Two FBI agents also planned to go to the crash site, said agent Bob Burnham. "It's a combat aircraft and we have some questions about that," he said.

Curiouser and curioser.

It wasn't really a combat aircraft, it was a jet trainer. Admittedly they were only ever bought by Air Forces but it was hardly a combat plane.

These are quite common now, I have a number of friends (mostly in CA) who own ex military aircraft and fly them on regular occasions (they call them 'warbirds'). Most of them fly propeller engined warbirds, ranging from Cesna 02s to seriously overengined Sea Furies but I do know 2 of them with jets, one of them an Albatross similar to the downed Alaska plane and one Alpha Jet, which really IS a combat plane.

If you are in SoCal and even vaguely interested, go to Chino airport where most of my friends keep their planes & where they fly them most weekends.

As it was a 2 seater and on its way to Las Vegas it was most likely on its way to a combatsimulation business. There are now a number of these where you and a friend go up in 2 seat planes & whilst the pilot remains in ultimate control, the 2 of you 'dogfight' until you run out of ammo or are shot down.

If you click on the link, you will notice the it says about the Albatross "This adventure is currently unavailable"

Originally posted by LeitzNoctilux:As it was a 2 seater and on its way to Las Vegas it was most likely on its way to a combatsimulation business. There are now a number of these where you and a friend go up in 2 seat planes & whilst the pilot remains in ultimate control, the 2 of you 'dogfight' until you run out of ammo or are shot down.

Actually, I did notice where they mentioned it was a trainer, but still ... I guess I'm just surprised civilians are allowed to pilot 'warbirds' at all. I mean, a prop-engined fighter is one thing, even an over-engined one, but a jet-fighter? May as well just give civilians guided missiles to play with.

quote:

It wasn't really a combat aircraft, it was a jet trainer. Admittedly they were only ever bought by Air Forces but it was hardly a combat plane.